Fitbit Flex Stepbot POC v.01

At my new job they have a fitbit step count challenge and if you can clock 40,000 steps in one day you can win a $100 gift card.   The only problem is that there is no way in the world I will ever legitimately get 40,000 steps in one day (The closest I ever … Read more

What Working In Politics Has Taught Me About InfoSec

As I get ready to wrap up 9 years running network security for the Missouri House tomorrow I thought it would be a good time to do one of those blog posts where I sum up what I learned in a nice neat package. So here are 5 things working in politics has taught me … Read more

iOS 8 Allows Siri To Bypass Your Lock Screen

By default iOS 8 allows Siri to bypass your iphone’s lock screen and reply to messages by default.  You should disable it.  Here is how: Go to Settings Go to Touch ID & Passcode Turn off everything in “Allow Access When Locked”.

10 Books That Influenced My Life

I was challenged by my friend on Facebook to name 10 books the influenced my life.  I figured if I was going to put together a list I might as well put it on my blog. So here are the 10 books in alphabetical order that have influenced my life: 48 Laws of Power I … Read more

44CON 2014 Recap

I just returned from a week in London for the 4th annual 44CON.  I had an amazing time hosting a quiz, being on panel and giving a talk. 44CON is one of the best ran conferences that I attend. Adrian and Steve  both really care about the conference and it being entertaining and educational for … Read more

How To Disable Auto-Play In Facebook

If you are on a limited data plan you should turn off Facebook Auto-play to help preserve your data. There have been a few stories this week about it causing huge data bills. Here is how to do so in iOS: Click the Settings Icon. Find the Facebook Settings. Click Settings. Click Auto-Play. Choose Off … Read more

Applying Kindergarten Rules To Security Professionals

My son came home from his  first full week of Kindergarten this week and had a list “learning targets” that lined up amazingly well with what we should be doing as security professionals. I can use pictures to predict story content.Being able to understand what is going on if we only have half the information … Read more

An Honest Message from Your Security Guy.

This morning I read “An Honest Message from Your IT Guy” and was kind of amused and disappointed and thought I should pen “An Honest Message from Your Security Guy” as a rebuttal. I am here to help.Seriously.  I know the average IT guy can come across as a jerk but I work really hard … Read more

Facebook Messenger is not spying on you.

Over the last couple of days I have seen a bunch of people post a link to this blog post about how the new Facebook Messenger “crosses the line” when it comes to the permissions it asks for.   Yes, the Facebook Messenger app requests these permissions:     Change the state of network connectivity     … Read more

Walmart Savings Catcher

If you do your grocery shopping at WalMart like I do you will want to start using the Walmart Savings Catcher program. It is extremely easy to use: On my first time using it I saved $2.35. I am guessing I will save close to about $150 a year using this program that I normally … Read more